The Green Elements of the First 2012 Presidential Debate

President Obama reiterated his desire to end tax breaks for big oil and reaffirmed his support for new sources of energy like solar, wind and biofuels. The President also stated that his administration has helped to create 5 million new private sector jobs. To increase these numbers the President wants to invest in education and create 2 million new places in community colleges.

For his part, Mitt Romney said "I like coal!" He wants to see the tar sands pipeline ferry dirty oil through the US. He repeated the old Republican refrain of energy independence through more fossil fuel. He also wants to do away with "excessive" regulations.

The President said we tried Romney's approach in 2001 and 2003 and what we got was the slowest job growth in 50 years. Romney chided Obama for 90 billion dollars worth of government investment in green energy.

Obama has offered a detailed plan for how he will achieve his goals, Romney is deliberately withholding specifics but as the President said his math does not add up.

Early polls among likely voters show that Romney won the debate with 67 percent of respondents giving him the victory while only 25 percent favor Obama.

Romney did make an impression. Time will tell whether it will be enough to win him the Presidency and fire-up America's coal powered future. A Romney Presidency will not only abandon clean air and water it will entrench conservatives on the supreme court. Not less than 2 supreme court justices will retire in the next four years and Romney will appoint new judges ensuring a conservative stranglehold on the highest court in the land.

Romney said he likes green energy too. If anyone believes that, they deserve 4 years of dirty air and water. But what about the rest of us, do we also deserve to have our air and water contaminated by 4 years of environmentally irresponsible leadership? Do we deserve a President who will grow a 19th century economy and undermine American competitiveness? Do we also deserve a President who will drive up GHG emissions?

American voters need to understand that a Romney administration will make America less competitive, it will also make it impossible to stave off runaway climate change.

See the related articles below to review Obama's green accomplishments. Below that you will find a summary of Mitt Romney and the GOP's war on the environment.

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GOP Resorts to Fraud to Ease Passage of Anti-Environment Act

Republicans are working hard to push the TRAIN Act through the House, they have even resorted to fraud to try to ease the bill's passage.On Thursday September 22, the House Energy and Commerce Committee's GOP leadership inaccurately claimed that they have the support of a number of green groups.

Republicans circulated the fraudulent list of more than 100 groups allegedly supporting the TRAIN legislation. The list includes a number of groups that have strongly opposed the bill, including the Texas chapter of Public Citizen, Clean Air Watch, the Clean Air Task Force and Clean Water Action.

“It’s the dirtiest of dirty air acts,” Clean Air Watch President Frank O’Donnell said, referring to the TRAIN Act which would prevent the EPA from doing its job.

“There is no way we would sign a letter in support of the TRAIN Act,” Stuart Ross, the communications director of the Clean Air Task Force said. “The TRAIN Act is one of the most aggressive and toxic bills ever introduced on the floor of the House from an environmental and public health standpoint.”

© 2011, Richard Matthews. All rights reserved.

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Stop the Republicans Anti-Environment TRAIN

On Friday September 23, the US House is expected to bring to the floor the TRAIN Act – one of the most extreme anti-environmental bills in memory. The measure, known as the "Transparency in Regulatory Analysis of Impacts on the Nation Act," or "TRAIN Act (H.R. 2401)," is set for a final vote.

The TRAIN Act would mandate new interagency economic studies of EPA rules. The bill would delay a recently finalized rule to cut interstate power plant emissions that worsen ozone and particulate pollution, and an upcoming rule to cut mercury and other air toxics from power plants. Twenty seven east coast states, would be affected by the Cross-State Air Pollution rule; the mercury rule would affect many industries across the country.

A key Republican is floating an amendment that would mandate longer minimum delays to the power plant rules than the underlying bill requires.

Not surprisingly, the American Petroleum Institute and the US Chamber of Commerce support the Act. "The TRAIN Act would put the brakes on several of EPA's most damaging regulations until a full study of their cumulative impact is done -- one that includes not only health and social benefits but actual impact on economic competitiveness, trade, energy supplies, consumer spending and jobs," the chamber said in a letter.

Planet hating Republicans and even some moderate Democrats say EPA regulations will impose massive burdens on the economy and cost thousands of jobs.

However, these statements are contradicted by an EPA report released in March finding that between 1990 and 2020, the benefits of Clean Air Act rules will outweigh the costs by a factor of 30 to 1.

The EPA estimates that Clean Air Act rules -- particularly for particle pollution -- will prevent 230,000 premature deaths by 2020. The EPA analysis also takes into account medical expenses averted, including an estimated 120,000 hospital visits.

"The beneficial economic effects of these two improvements alone are projected to more than offset the expenditures for pollution control," it concludes.

These clean air rules are life-savers for Americans suffering from heart disease, asthma and other chronic respiratory diseases. Although detractors argue that clean air is simply too expensive, the facts suggest otherwise.

Top 10 utilities combined profits in 2010 – $28.4 billion.

Return on investments for the smog rule that the President delayed – $37 billion in value for a cost of about $20 billion by 2020.

Costs associated with implementing current Clean Air Act standards in 2010 – $1.3 trillion in public and environmental health benefit at a cost of $50 billion.

According to the National Resources Defense Council, that’s more than 9% of the GDP at a cost of .4% of the GDP – a 26 to1 benefits to costs ratio.

In addition to saving lives, clean air is cost effective.

© 2011, Richard Matthews. All rights reserved.

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Defend Clean Air and Oppose the TRAIN Act

Americans are resisting the TRAIN Act (H.R. 2401) ahead of a House floor vote which is expected on Friday September 23rd 2011. If passed, the TRAIN Act will sacrifice tens of thousands of lives, pollute the air, and expose children, families, and communities to toxic air pollutants that cause illness and developmental disorders.

The NRDC considers the Train Act to be the most deadly bill in House Majority Leader Eric Cantor’s Pro-Pollution Plan.

The TRAIN Act spawned a biased committee of cabinet members to review the costs of Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) health standards. However, it completely ignored the economic and health benefits of the EPA's health stadards.

Since its inception, the TRAIN act has been amended to make it even more deadly for Americans. The amendment from Rep. Whitfield (R-KY) would permanently block two life-saving clean air safeguards: the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule, which curbs smog and soot pollution from power plants that crosses state lines, and the Mercury and Air Toxics standards, which limit mercury and other toxic air pollution from power plants.

The Republican plan would prevent the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from re-issuing the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule for a minimum of 19 months, and any Mercury and Air Toxics standards for a minimum of 15 months.

The amendment also eliminates any actual deadline for the EPA to re-issue standards. This repeals current law, which has imposed firm deadlines for EPA to issue air toxics standards for polluting industries. Blocking the Cross-State Air Pollution Rule and Mercury and Air Toxics for just one additional year would result in:

• up to 25,300 lives lost;
• more than 11,000 heart attacks;
• more than 120,000 asthma attacks;
• over 12,200 more hospital and emergency room visits; and
• many hundreds of thousands more days of missed work or school.
• the bill’s lengthier minimum periods of delay (15 &  19 months) would result in up to 33,450 premature deaths.

The real toll likely will be much higher since the legislation allows indefinite delays in these vital public health safeguards.

Call your Representative and urge them to vote “NO” on H.R. 2401 and block this reckless attack on clean air protections for all Americans.

Call Congress at 877-573-7693 now and say No to HR2401.

© 2011, Richard Matthews. All rights reserved.

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